A serious environmental crisis is threatening to wipe out over 32 communities in Ideato North and South Federal Constituency of Imo State, prompting a passionate appeal by Hon. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere, Representative of the constituency at the House of Representatives. During plenary, the lawmaker moved a motion calling for urgent federal intervention and a formal declaration of the affected area as an erosion disaster zone.
Rising under matters of urgent public importance, Hon. Ugochinyere, painted a grim picture of widespread destruction caused by worsening gully erosion across his constituency. He said the crisis is not only destroying critical road networks and farmlands but is now threatening to completely displace thousands of residents and disrupt livelihoods across dozens of communities.
The lawmaker listed the severely affected communities to include Umeshi, Amanato, Uruala, Isiekenesi, Isiokpo, Umughaobe, Ozuome, Obodoukwu, Arondizogu, Akokwa, Umuobom, and surrounding areas. According to him, these communities are facing severe gully erosion that has cut off access to essential services such as healthcare, education, trade, and transportation.
Hon. Ugochinyere noted that one of the worst-hit areas is the Umeshi–Amanato–Isiekenesi road, which has now collapsed, leaving residents cut off and stranded. He also highlighted the situation in Uruala, where three major erosion sites—referred to as Uruala Gully Sites 1, 2, and 3—are threatening to completely engulf the town center, including the historic Afo-Uruala market. He warned that if nothing is done urgently, the heart of Uruala and nearby communities may be lost entirely.
He stressed that the crisis is already destroying homes, properties, and farmlands, with many residents forced to flee their ancestral lands due to the environmental threat. The lawmaker emotionally appealed to his colleagues and the federal government to act swiftly, stating that “our people are at risk of being swallowed by the land they have lived on for generations.”
Ugochinyere added that Ideato land is not just a local community but a historic place that produced some of Nigeria’s foremost patriots and national icons such as Mbonu Ojike, Dr. K.O. Mbadiwe, Elochukwu Njiaka, Finland Anaghara, and Chief Mmaduakor. He stressed that preserving the land is preserving the legacy and heritage of the Igbo people and Nigeria at large.
While commending the federal government’s earlier intervention at the Umuchima gully erosion site, which was later taken over by the Imo State Government, he insisted that the current crisis far exceeds what the state can handle alone and therefore requires federal response and resources.
In his motion, Ugochinyere called on the Federal Government to declare the Ideato constituency an erosion disaster zone to pave the way for special funding and emergency measures. He urged the Federal Ministries of Works and Environment, the Ecological Fund Office, the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA), the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), and the South-East Development Commission to immediately embark on massive rehabilitation, reconstruction, and erosion control projects across all the affected communities.
He also appealed to the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, as well as the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), to provide relief materials to those already displaced by the erosion and to set up emergency support systems in the worst-hit areas.
In conclusin, Ugochinyere sought that the Committees on Works, Environment, Emergency and Disaster Preparedness, Ecological Funds, the South-East Development Commission, and the NDDC should ensure thorough oversight and compliance with the motion’s implementation.
The motion was well-received by fellow lawmakers and is expected to prompt urgent assessments and responses from the relevant government agencies.
